Marijuana and Hemp

It's time to legalize marijuana for adult use and regulate it like alcohol. The War on Drugs has done major damage to generations of black, brown, and poor white people. This clogs up our legal system and cost taxpayers billions of dollars due to mass incarceration of non-violent drug offenders.

I support the expungement of all records of people arrested, charged, and convicted of marijuana possession and small quantity distribution. Just legalizing "industrial hemp" isn't enough.

Our hemp farmers need more protection than what they currently have. It's a huge gamble for them to jump into the hemp industry because of strict testing standards and no crop insurance. We're in an experimental phase, and overregulation should not hamper their progress. Cannabis is a cash crop, and it's time for Virginia to catch up with other states who have ended the prohibition on marijuana.